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Think Science, Cosmology and Philosophy
William James famously said that "a great many people think they are thinking when they are merely rearranging their prejudices." It seems that what makes a true thinker is not any one thing, but it certainly means keeping an open mind to new ideas and perspectives. With that in mind, here are some intriguing scientific thought experiments, perplexing cosmological questions and quintessential philosophical dilemmas. In short, here is 'fuel for thought,' if you'll excuse the play on words, from some of the classic thinking disciplines. Hopefully it will have something for each kind of thinker.Scientific thought experiments are a great way to bring highly complex and specialized questions into the lives of everyday thinkers. By using straightforward analogies experts are able to make truly fascinating problems accessible to the general public. In turn, the visual images these conjure in the mind's eye are compelling on a fundamental level. WIRED has collected some of the most famous of these from history into a simple list, including classics such as Schroedinger's Quantum Cat and Einstein's Light Beam. Respectively, these represent simplified but still very powerful ways of understand scientific issues of significance that are available to all interested thinkers with an imagination.
Cosmological questions are similarly scientific, but deal with big-picture issues regarding the history of time and the nature of the universe. Now, it may not matter to us on a pragmatic level whether the universe is expanding or contracting or precisely how big it is. Still, our psychological understanding of such frequently asked cosmological questions strongly informs our comprehension of reality. Moreover, cosmology rests uniquely at the heart of the other core thinking disciplines, including science, religion and philosophy.
Of course no survey of important thinking issues could be complete without a consideration of philosophy. Many philosophical issues seem timeless, such as the debate over whether we have free will or if our actions are, instead, predetermined. Some even argue that this is a false dichotomy, yet the question is still asked by philosophers and scholars around the world. Likewise issues of truth versus relativism have remained persistent questions for millennia. Wikipedia provides an editable and ever-changing list of classic and contemporary philosophical questions that provides an excellent starting point for people who wish to keep thinking about these and other philosophical questions.
There are, of course, many kinds of thinking beyond those related to scientific, cosmological and philosophical issues. I believe our former president was paraphrasing William James, whether he knew it or not, when John F. Kennedy stated that we "too often enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought."
What about you? Dare to think about science, cosmology or philosophy?
This post was written by Craig Kohler from Web Urbanist. Craig has an undergraduate degree in philosophy and has just presented his master’s thesis on architecture and urban design. His site deals with cutting-edge issues and flashback then-and-now comparisons.
Cosmological questions are similarly scientific, but deal with big-picture issues regarding the history of time and the nature of the universe. Now, it may not matter to us on a pragmatic level whether the universe is expanding or contracting or precisely how big it is. Still, our psychological understanding of such frequently asked cosmological questions strongly informs our comprehension of reality. Moreover, cosmology rests uniquely at the heart of the other core thinking disciplines, including science, religion and philosophy.
Of course no survey of important thinking issues could be complete without a consideration of philosophy. Many philosophical issues seem timeless, such as the debate over whether we have free will or if our actions are, instead, predetermined. Some even argue that this is a false dichotomy, yet the question is still asked by philosophers and scholars around the world. Likewise issues of truth versus relativism have remained persistent questions for millennia. Wikipedia provides an editable and ever-changing list of classic and contemporary philosophical questions that provides an excellent starting point for people who wish to keep thinking about these and other philosophical questions.
There are, of course, many kinds of thinking beyond those related to scientific, cosmological and philosophical issues. I believe our former president was paraphrasing William James, whether he knew it or not, when John F. Kennedy stated that we "too often enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought."
What about you? Dare to think about science, cosmology or philosophy?
This post was written by Craig Kohler from Web Urbanist. Craig has an undergraduate degree in philosophy and has just presented his master’s thesis on architecture and urban design. His site deals with cutting-edge issues and flashback then-and-now comparisons.
14 thoughts:
I love your article and how it promotes the use and development of our human cognitive powers. What good is the gift if we don’t use it? One of my earliest memories were of when I realized what it meant to be human with the ability to understand our mortality, to have the use of foresight and to be able to comprehend questions larger than ourselves. Basically for me it was realizing that we can only detect with our human senses one very tiny portion of what makes up the universe. To know that there is not only the things that we know we don’t know but that there are so many more things that we don’t know we don’t know. It was humbling and eye opening all at the same time and I found I was unable to explain the concept to some people, they just could not grasp that not only do humans not have all the answers but we don’t even have all the questions.
Great article, I enjoyed it very much.
Glad you liked it! I fully agree - not only are there things we don't know there are things we can't know, and don't even know about. Even within the realm of human understanding it would be impossible for any one person to grasp even a fraction of our Earthly reality, let alone the universe. That is, however, why I like thinking about these things - in part to reflect upon the great unknowns and unknowables. Glad you liked the post - I rarely sit back and talk philosophy anymore, and mostly stick to design and art. It's good to stretch my brain once in a while ;)
Now this is an article! Not that all here at ‘the thinking blog’ aren’t! Just this has the merits - the making of Bishop Berkeley and other great Philosophers! Perhaps one of the greatest lost arts in our society today is philosophy. Yes, this is a Thinker - Craig Kohler from Web Urbanist!
I am a positivist. I think that scientific thought is able to answer to most of the debated questions: it's only a matter of time (if humanity survives to itself !). How many problems seemed without answer just 100 years ago? But 100 human years are less than nothing compared to the life of the Universe. I am aware that many new questions will arise: but new theories will always be proposed. Unfortunately, our personal life is too short to know these answers, but posterity will know better and better.
Everyone has prejudices, there's no doubting that.
But the key thing here is the ability of the individual to set their prejudices aside and remain objective rather than being subjective.
Essentially, you have two types of thinking within people.
The first type is the guy who identifies a problem quickly and choses to use the tried & tested method, just like his dad and his granddad did before him.
Yes, it's ugly, yes it's crude, yes it probably upsets some people but it works.
Then there's the second type of guy who doesn't like the tried & tested method because it clashes with his sensibilities.
Plus, he'd prefer not to upset or offend anyone, so he will forgo the common sense approach and chose something less effective based purely on the fact that it's a solution more aligned with his own values, regardless of its ineffectiveness.
Prejudices come in different shapes & sizes and aren't always obvious, but they're there all the same...
I am attracted to his post by the quote of William James at the very beginning. And I think - wow, cruel but true. Thanks so much for the article which stretch my perspective and afterall, it takes awareness to break from the usual and comfortable.
very "thought" provoking article. Thought for me has always been more of an introspective experience and more solitary. But the problem with that is its too easy to fall into the trap of regirgitating the same solutions since there are no new elements to bring additional insights. Communication, whether by reading or talking to others on their perspective of the issue at hand can leave seeds that ultimately take me to another level where a new insight is possible. The expectation that its possible to find "the answer" or "the truth" is a relative illusion. What usually happens is more questions are raised than answered, which in the end is ok, since the truth is not an absolute, but a relative concept dependent on where ones perspective lays. Recognizing that, I don't put all those expectations and pressure on myself to find "the" solution. That is like asking the question, What is "IT",and Is "IT" the same as "THAT".
Great article! Its great to be able to think when you have some 'dead time' (like on a bus, in an elevator) instead of continually turning to the next distraction - and this is a good 'sample pack' of stuff to mull over.
I've done a similar thing in a series of posts on the Weird World we live in (relativity, quantum mechanics), but my favourite is this one:
Why think at all?
Just and added point..The Answer to Question: Why does time seem to exist only in a forward direction?
Time seems to only exist in a forward direction because the universe is expanding. If the Universe reaches Critical Velocity and starts to contract ....then time, as we measure time will reverse according to the Big Bang / Big Crunch Theory. The reason for this is that time does not exist without change or movement..... (change or movement of particle matter or energy as we know it). If matter has no movement either expanding or contracting then time does not exit for that matter. However Time can exist around non moving particle matter if something is either expanding or contracting around it.
If the expansion of matter increases as in the case of our universe, or an expanding object, or even light...then time increases relative to the rate of expansion. Example: if carbon A is heated and expands faster than carbon B (which is not heated) then time increases in carbon A relative to carbon B...However as Einstein pointed out...time is relative to the observer...and you need something of contrast to make that comparison....fortunately our universe offers lots of contrast ...otherwise we would have a very difficult time figuring this out. Time being relative to the observer can exist at different speeds based on the rate of expanding matter. If you are on riding on a beam of light than time is much different than your friend riding on a sound wave. Of course time is relative to the observer, therefore your time is much faster only to him, or any body else who is not on a beam of light.
If matter contracts or condenses then time actually reverses…as in the case of a contracting universe…so Planks Quantum would be measured as zero time for the entire Universe…and time starts at the point of the Big Bang (once matter is on the move again)… In the case of a Black Hole, relative to our expanding universe)... there is also no time. (except for matter being sucked into a Black Hole….this matter would be reversing in time, until at which point it becomes part of the Black Hole mass, then time (in a Black Hole) as in Planks Quantum is zero….which is odd because the Universe is still expanding around the Black Hole…but it is consistent with the theory that. Time can exist around “non moving matter” if something is either expanding or contracting
Time as we know it is measured in a forward direction and will continue until the point of critical velocity…at which point time starts to reverse…and for a brief moment…the point where the Universe changes from expanding to contracting…time will again be zero…as in Planks Quantum. However…during the forward direction of time…(while the Universe is expanding)…Black Holes are continuing to suck up matter…and should in theory at some point converge with other Black Holes….Therefore…as the universe is expanding from the Big Bang…there is multitude of matter which is not expanding (Black Holes)…which might well be unexploded Planks Quantum matter from the Big Bang…and the Black Holes with their massive gravitational force are sucking up matter which was attempting to expand but was not able to overcome the stronger force of the Black Hole…like mini-Plank Quantum’s converging within the universe …When the Universe reaches Critical Velocity and then all matter in our Universe starts to contract…heading towards the Big Crunch….the multitude of Black Holes converging (up to that point) should in theory rapidly increase the speed of reverse time …acting as an accelerant force of a contracting Universe with their collective gravitational force …So the reverse of time.(the journey the contracting Universe is taking towards the Big Crunch)...should happen much quicker than the time it took for the Universe to go from the Big Bang to Critical Velocity…That is of course Time relative from the Big Bang to Critical Velocity ……in contrast to …….Time Relative from Critical Velocity to the Big Crunch. Mathematically it might be possible to estimate this time.… Rob MacRiner rmacriner@sympatico.ca Nov 2007
I've a different answer about time.
Rob is saying that when (if?) the Universe starts contracting things will run backward like an old movie.
The universe may slow down and then begin to be compacted but I don’t think that the progression of events around us that we call time will reverse in our view of the world. I don't think the inhabitants of this Universe will even notice when the Universe starts contracting (if it ever does).
Regarding his example of carbon A and Carbon B. The half-life of a given radioactive material is always the same, regardless of temperature, chemical combination, or any other condition. The half-life of an element is a good indicator to the outside world of how it's internal clock is ticking and it does not change when heated.
Matter falling into a black hole is converted to spaghetti by tidal forces and time for the particles slows down to zero as it falls inward. Elements like Uranium will have their half-lives lengthened long before it is separated into quarks and then combined with whatever is at the center. Time if it exists, stops but does not reverse within a black hole.
There are a number of articles on the internet about "Does Time Exist" that calls into question whether there is any such thing as time, I've written one myself.
Oldtimer
author of quantumweird
I'm not suggesting that Time will reverse itself as one would rewind a movie. The point is that time as we know it can not exit without particle matter either expanding or contracting. Imagine a container of colored sand 5" high ..packed in a 50 'glass tube on a space shuttle. The color images of sand particles seen from outside the glass, might look like some kind of landscape. Now the sand explodes in the 50’ glass tube ....while the shuttle is docked ..and those sand particles hurl in a forward or expansive direction...up the 50' glass tube...after the explosion. But all of a sudden the space shuttle takes off, and the G forces are very intense, at the same time the particles of sand reach their maximum expulsion. The G forces would bring the sand back down to the base of that glass tube, in a hurry, but when they arrived packed back at the base, now once again 5" high they would not represent the color image of the landscape that was seen before the explosion....The image would be much different. Forward time would be the expansion of the sand after the explosion. Reversed time for the sand would be as the G forces drive the sand back to the based of the glass tube, and pack those colored sand particles back to it's original 5 ". That is the image of reverse time that I see. Nov 2007
A mathematical why of the Big Bang
Outline
Let Ui be a set of locations of particles of the universe.
U1xU2x ...... xUix ..... a set of infinite paths
(Cartesian product of sets of urelements).
this set is equal to the void set by the
negation of the axiom of choice.
So there is no more space containing the particles.
The particles collapse on themselves: Big Crunch.
Then Big Bang.
The Big Bang has taken place thus the negation of the axiom
of choice is likely to be considered as a good axiom.
Adib Ben Jebara.
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I've been pondering about this very much... it sure raises a few questions..
frokostordning
What do you think? Post your thoughts..